This dish was inspired by the latest Donna Hay magazine (and my Sis as she cooked it first) but I decided to put my little twist on it and poach the salmon rather than oven bake it.  I am sure it was fine the other way, I just loved the idea of a gentle poach and as with most of my Asian style dishes I just had to whack that crunchy, aromatic salad on top.  To me it just rounds off the meal and cuts through the richness of both salmon and coconut milk to leave you with a fresh palate and a lighter tummy.  Hmmmmm, delish!

Prep time:  20 Minutes              Cooking time:  20  Minutes                 $$  Medium Budget

Serves 4

4 x salmon fillets, skinned and boned

1 cup of dessicated coconut

1 x 400ml tin of coconut milk

2 tbs of fish sauce

Juice of 1 lime

1 tbs of brown sugar

3 kaffir lime leaves

1 bunch of Gai Larn or Baby Choy Sum

Steamed rice to serve

For the Garnish:

2 spring onions, sliced thinly on the diagonal

1 red chilli, halved, seeds removed and thinly sliced

1 cup of coriander leaves

2 kaffir lime leaves, rolled and very finely sliced

Preheat the oven to 220°C

Place the coriander leaves, spring onion, chilli and sliced kaffir lime leaves in a small bowl and cover with iced water.  Set aside and drain the water off just before serving.  This will ensure the garnish is lovely and crisp.

Place the coconut milk, fish sauce, lime juice, sugar and lime leaves in a shallow casserole or oven proof pan (if you don’t have oven proof you can always wrap the handle in tin foil to protect it from the heat of the oven).  Bring the mixture to a low simmer, stirring to dissolve the sugar.  Once simmering, place the salmon fillets in the pan and cover with a lid.  Poach the salmon on a low heat for approximately 5-7 minutes.  Remove the lid and divide the coconut on top of the pieces of salmon.  Place in the oven for a further 5 minutes or until the coconut is toasted and golden.

Steam the Gai Larn or Baby Choy Sum for 3-4 minutes or until just cooked through and still bright green in colour.

To serve, divide the Asian greens on four serving plates and carefully top with a piece of salmon.  Use an egg slide to lift the fish out so that you don’t lose any coconut.  Divide the sauce over and around the salmon and top with a handful of the crunchy garnish.  Serve with steamed rice.